Turkey : Secularism under siege

nationalpost.com

BY-Robert Fulford

Many of the brave Turks who have defied tear gas and water canons during the last two weeks have told reporters they are afraid that Turkey is being gradually turned into an Islamic Republic. In many cases they are Muslims (like nearly all Turks) but they also believe in secular government, the Turkish way of life since the 1920s. They think that Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the defiant and peevish prime minister, wants to reverse Turkish history. Apparently he’s attempting, in his sly way, to undo Kemalism, named after Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who led Turkey into modernity. Kemalism separated religion from politics. That constitutional change wasn’t challenged until recent times. But in 2007 about 300,000 secularist Turks were concerned enough to demonstrate in the capital, Ankara, against Erdogan’s re-election. With banners showing Ataturk’s image, they argued that Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP) had an Islamic agenda. “Turkey is secular and will remain secular forever,” they shouted. Five years later, there are signs that they were right to be worried. So the demonstrations that began on May 31 over the destruction of Gezi Park have turned into a furious national debate about how Turkey is governed.Legislation adopted last month by parliament bans the sale of alcohol between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. and forbids all liquor advertising. Erdogan claims he wants only to protect “new generations from such un-Islamic habits.” He’s said he hopes to see a “pious generation.” He told an AKP meeting that the state hasn’t outlawed alcohol. “People can still buy alcohol and drink it in the privacy of their own homes.” Public spaces, on the other hand, are under government jurisdiction. His government has announced that a new bridge over the Bosphorus will be named after Sultan Selim I, the 16th-century Ottoman potentate who ordered the massacre of 40,000 Alevi Muslims, who were (and in some cases still are) considered heretics in Turkey by the majority Sunnis. Selim was said to believe that “the killing of one Alevite had as much otherworldly reward as killing 70 Christians.” Government apologists have said no harm was meant but it would be hard to see honouring Sultan Selim I as the action of a secular state. Last month a young couple kissing in a metro station in Ankara found themselves instructed, through the public address system, ‘to act in accordance with moral rules’ “We were born and raised on the land that is the legacy of the Ottoman Empire,” Erdogan said in a taped interview. “They are our ancestors. It is out of the question that we might deny that presence. It’s very natural for us to use what was beautiful about the Ottoman Empire.” Erdogan’s ministers also show great affection for the past. His foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu looks forward to a “great restoration” that will embrace “the ancient values we have lost.” He wants to save the Turks from the “new identities that were thrust upon us in the modern era” — the period in the 20th century when clothing was Westernized, secular schools were introduced and women were encouraged to pursue careers. Many of the protesters are young and middle class; they take secularism for granted and deeply resent any quasi-official interference with their lives. Last month a young couple kissing in a metro station in Ankara found themselves instructed, through the public address system, “to act in accordance with moral rules.” Of course there are no moral rules covering kissing; just Islamic practice that keeps males and females at a distance in public.A day later a crowd of 100, assembled by social media, began a mass kissing on the same site. Some held signs that said “Free kisses.” About 20 traditionalists staged a counter-protest, chanting “Allahu Akbar!” Police separated the opposing groups. Erdogan has been elected prime minister three times in a row, his opinion polls are better than most successful politicians and Turkey’s economic record is, by international standards, enviable. But his tone, and his management of every issue that arises, suggest that he would really like to be a dictator. Dictators can use an official religion to maintain power, just as religious leaders can use the state to force their rules on the population. Iran is the most obvious case today but history provides scores of others. Possibly that’s Erdogan’s plan. The events of the last 15 days demonstrate that a change so fundamental could only be accomplished by ripping the social fabric of the whole country. At age 59, however, Erdogan can imagine exercising power for 15 years. Perhaps he hopes to win a place in history as the anti-Ataturk.